The Vengeful Princess

Chapter 10: So Much For Symbolic Hairpins

I spent the night tossing and turning, waking up in a cold sweat under the blue tint of the early morning, waiting for the sun to rise. Every time I closed my eyes, I was immediately plagued by memories of Nico, as if his ghost was reminding me of my true purpose at the palace.

Last night, I was brought back to a hot summer's evening. That day had been especially humid, with the palace grounds smouldering up a disorienting haze. Many of our servants had passed out from heatstroke. Keeping the windows closed was like roasting in a furnace, but opening the windows only sent blasts of hot air into our faces. Nightfall was a welcome reprieve from the unforgiving heat of day.

I had just bid goodnight to my parents and was retiring to bed when a tiny pebble clacked against the balcony door. Hurriedly, I dismissed my maids and threw open the glass doors. I was met with a cool breeze as I leant over the balcony. 

"Nico?" 

A silhouette stepped into the light, the shadow dropping away from his shoulders as he raised a hand in a relaxed greeting. 

"Princess."

It took mere seconds for me to slip a light robe over my silk negligee and a pair of slippers on my feet before I was out the door, launching myself into Nico's arms. Slightly jerking back, I scrunched up my nose, "You're all sweaty!"

He chuckled as he tightened his arms around around me, burying a kiss atop my head. "And now so are you." 

A crescent moon hung silently above us, watching as we made our way past the guards on duty and onto the road, all the way until we were at the water's edge. It painted the world with silver, admiring its own beauty in the reflection of the creek's body. For a moment both Nico and I simply stood and marvelled at the sight, revelling in the moment. 

An idea rose in my mind, dosing me with adrenaline. I shot a sneaky side glance at Nico and let my robe slide off my shoulders. The action caught his attention and his eyes widened as I slipped my negligee over my shoulders and jumped into the inviting water. 

"Celina!" 

I squealed from the refreshing coldness in the water, responding by splashing him. "Why don't you join me?"

Nico cast a quick glance towards the direction of the road, "What if someone catches us?"

"That risk is what makes it fun!" I pouted. I began swimming away from shore. The water was just shallow enough that I could touch the bottom if I partially submerged my head. A few seconds later, I heard a splash and was pulled back by the waist. 

Hungry lips devoured every inch of my body before lightly biting at the skin on my neck. I gasped in surprise, we usually avoided love bites on easily seen areas. I would have to cover that up tomorrow. He spun me around to face him before his lips crashed onto mine, my hands twisting into his hair as we melded into one being. 

Perhaps it was the thrill of knowing that at any given moment, someone could walk by and catch us or the public nature of such raw, uninhibited passion that added an incomparable, indescribable level to the erotic intimacy of the moment. The water melded against our bodies, drenching every pore, every nerve, every last cell, with the purest, unadulterated form of pleasure. We drowned ourselves in an untamed bliss, with all the stars and moon as witnesses, under the hot midsummer's night sky.

♕

I blinked at the purple bruise forming on my wrist, slowly focusing on the silver bracelet that wrapped around it. No matter how hard I tried to, I couldn't bear to take the damn thing off. It seemed to be a betrayal to the memory of Nico, somehow. The dream, along with the prophecy had been slaps to the face for me to wake up to the harsh reality. I still didn't hold much faith in Manfred's words but one line of his prophecy stuck to me.